Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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NEWS OF THE WEIRD by CHUCK SHEPPARD Cliche Come to Life: In an August report, the inspector general of the Department of Veterans Affairs warned that the regional office building in Winston-Salem, N.C., was in danger of collapsing because there were too many claims files stacked on the sixth floor. "We noticed floors bowing under the excess weight to the extent that the tops of file cabinets were noticeably unlevel throughout the storage area." The report also warned of the potential of files falling on, and injuring, employees. For the short term, the agency relocated all the folders (estimated: 37,000) on the sixth floor to offices on the fifth, seventh and eighth floors. [Winston-Salem Journal, 8-31-2012] For years, U.S. senators Ron Wyden and Mark Udall (of the Select Committee on Intelligence) have been asking the director of National Intelligence to disclose how often the government might be "overcollecting" information on U.S. citizens by too enthusiastically applying the Patriot Act, but the director's office has maintained that such information, whether or not it reveals wrongdoing, is classified. In July, the office finally declassified one fact that it said the senators were free to use: that the government had "on at least one occasion" overcollected information in violation of constitutional protections — but that's all. The number of times, and all other details, remain classified. [Lowering the Bar blog via Forbes, 7-25-2012] In August, a Michigan government watchdog group learned, in a Freedom of Information Act request, that the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department still to this day retains one job classification for a horseshoer. (The department owns no horses.) Over the years, the position has become a patronage slot paying about $57,000 a year in salary and benefits, sometimes requiring the "horseshoer" to do "blacksmith" work such as metal repair. (Because of severe budget cuts, the city employees' union fights to retain every job, no matter its title.) [Michigan Capitol Confidential, 8-20-2012] For some reason, South Korea (with about one-sixth the men that America has) is the world's largest consumer of male cosmetics, with its leading company approaching $1 billion a year in sales. According to a September Bloomberg Business Week dispatch, South Korean males became fascinated with the country's 2002 World Cup soccer team's "flower men," who had smooth, flawless skin, and the craze took off from there. Said a male college student, "Having a clean, neat face makes you look sophisticated and creates an image that you can handle yourself well." Makeup routines include drawing "thicker, bolder" eyebrows and, of course, expert application of lipstick. Said one admiring woman, "I feel like I have more to talk about with guys who use makeup." [Bloomberg Business Week, 9-17-2012] Government in Action! COPYRIGHT 2011 CHUCK SHEPHERD WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM WEEKLY HOROSCOPES BY HOLIDAY For the Week of October 21, 2012 ARIES (March 21-April 19) You'll add new skills to your bag. Keep in mind that nega- tivity has a disorienting effect on your learning process, and choose teachers who radiate a positive attitude. You need to be encouraged. TAURUS (April 20-May 20) Adults, amused by youth's idealistic point of view, like to ask children what they want to be when they grow up. This week shows you as wide-eyed and hopeful as you were many years ago. GEMINI (May 21-June 21) There's much you can learn on the Internet, but it's the organization and application of information that will move you forward. This week you'll get the hands-on experience you've needed to make a training process complete. Chuck Sheppard CANCER (June 22-July 22) You know what you want to project and measure it against what you are projecting. You make conscious adjustments if necessary to ensure that you're radiating the mood of your choosing. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) While you love being so much in the flow of life that you don't have to think about how you're doing, it doesn't always work that way. Objectivity is necessary for your growth. A bit of self- consciousness can be terrific. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) We live in a cul- ture of labeling and diagnosing. Does every- thing have to have a name? This week you'll be dealing with a situation that truly is hard to categorize, and it will be a waste of time to try. When you accept the way things are without calling it anything, you'll respond to "what is" instead of "what it's named." ADVICE GODDESS Splendor in the Grass Cuttings LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) You truly want to see your loved ones happy, so this is easy for you this week. You'll show your love by encouraging a loved one to pursue an indi- vidual path that may or may not include you. SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21) Make people your priority — not activities, money or productivity. Your work will always be there, but the people around you will change and grow and move. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) Beware of the person who never seems to make mistakes. For happiness and success, strive to be around real people who openly discuss mistakes and invite others to help them come up with solutions. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) You are a touchstone in the lives of others. There's no need to drum up extra excitement or do anything other than what comes naturally. Loved ones appreciate you for who you are: a solid, consistent person. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) With an open mind, you could be the one to come up with a brilliant solution to whatever ails people. You'll have to reject convention, though. Also, don't believe what you hear, especially if it's the same thing you've been hearing for years now. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20) The routine that used to support your productivity is no longer effective. You feel driven to establish a new way of working that makes sense in your current life. In all things ask, "What is the purpose?" With this question as a guiding principle, you will quickly figure out what needs to change. By Holiday Mathis Get all of your sports items here! Get all of your sports I married a domineering man 20 years my senior. We have two college- age kids. I've spent the past 22 years (half my life) navigating his ill- temperedness and high expectations, and my life is often chaotic and unhappy. For nine months, I've been infatuated with my super-hot 25-year- old co-worker, "Dax." I've tried to distance myself, but my husband met Dax, saw how buff Dax is, and offered him a landscaping job at our home! Because my husband is such a jerk, I was sure he'd drive Dax away, but he and Dax have great rapport! Dax laughs off my husband's snide comments and teases back and even flirts with me in front of him. He's now joining us for dinner, my husband's making him egg sandwiches in the morning, and my daughter called him "kinda like a sister." I'm having intense sexual fantasies, and my marital love life has perked up because I'm constantly turned on. My rational mind says this is a runaway train, and my crush- addled brain is trying to arrange alone time with him. I fantasize that my hubby will Amy Alkon run away with someone so I can be with Dax. — Lust-Whacked Two Great Businesses Under One Roof! C)(h % H A www.trophyhouseinc.com 3006 Bragg Blvd. 910.323.1791 So, your husband is "ill-tempered" and "domineering" — and apparently has been for 22 years. By all means, do nothing about that. The thing is, fair play in a marriage involves sticking to that boring "forsake all others" business until you've notified your spouse that you want out of your contract. And no, letting him catch you in bed with your lawn intern doesn't count as notification. It isn't too late to take the step you should've when you first started feeling miserable in your marriage — do that adult thing and use your words. Tell your husband how unhappy you are — in a way that motivates him to take action and makes him feel that he may lose you if he doesn't change. Think of this as triggering a positive crisis — positive in that it gives you a shot at turning a despot into a husband and a dictatorship into a partnership. You may ultimately decide to end your marriage, but at least you'll do it in a way that doesn't leave your kids with a sordid story of how Mom left Dad for the lawn guy and then the lawn guy left Mom for a hot 22-year-old with crabgrass. Amy Alkon all rights reserved. OCTOBER 17-23, 2012 UCW 23